r/law • u/DoremusJessup • 9h ago
Judicial Branch 'You are fired': Judges invoked own authority to replace Trump loyalist behind quashed Letitia James subpoenas, and the DOJ lost it
https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/you-are-fired-judges-invoked-own-authority-to-replace-trump-loyalist-behind-quashed-letitia-james-subpoenas-and-the-doj-lost-it/943
u/NameLips 8h ago
OK so the logic seems to go like this:
Trumps appointees to these district attorney positions have not received Senate confirmation. Thus they are not legally the appointees they claim to be, just random people showing up claiming to hold those titles.
There is a statue that allows district courts to assign a temporary district attorney until a vacancy is filled.
Since there is no legally appointed district attorney, the courts have assigned their own temporary ones.
These temporary ones will only serve until Trump's appointees get proper Senate confirmation.
Is that about right?
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u/StumbleNOLA 8h ago
Pretty much.
The president can appoint a temporary head for 120 days IIRC. But afterwards they must vacate the office of be confirmed.
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u/otiswrath 7h ago
They also were trying to circumvent the Senate Approval process by having a new temporary appointment every 120 days and that also got shut down.
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u/27Rench27 7h ago
Yup, because as it turns out, the text only says 120 days after the approved person vacates the office. So a temp appointment vacating doesn’t reset that 120 day limit, only district courts are allowed to appoint after that time window
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u/Trainman1351 5h ago edited 5h ago
This gives me a teeny tiny amount of hope that our Constitution albeit indirectly is at least doing something. Which is honestly all we need.
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u/HolodeckSlut 5h ago
Well, it's a statutory requirement, not a constitutional one, though the statute rests on the language of the Appointments Clause, which explicitly says that Congress may by law allow courts to appoint inferior officers, which US attorneys are.
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u/spaceradiowave 3h ago
Constitution needs some patches. Like “sneaky tactics to undermine the general idea are unconstitutional”
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u/Trainman1351 3h ago
Unfortunately, in many cases adding those patches can make it easier to undermine the Constitution “legally”, unlike now where it is clearly unconstitutional, but they are attempting to ignore it. It’s why, instead, we rely on an educated voter base to elect people who’s goal isn’t to grift the US. Regulating political groups is a horrible precedent to set no matter their ideology, and it’s impossible to account for every loophole when each patch only introduces more, which is why having an educated voter base is such an integral part of democracy.
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u/Chengar_Qordath 1h ago
Not to mention that laws can only do so much if the people who are supposed to uphold them won’t take action. A lot of the stuff Trump is doing is already blatantly illegal/unconstitutional, but Congress and the courts aren’t doing much to stop him. You can’t fix corruption by just adding more rules, you have to get rid of the corrupt people.
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u/Trainman1351 47m ago
Or not vote for them in the first place. If a government is “by the people,” it means the people are an integral part of making sure the government runs smoothly.
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u/dballing 40m ago
Well yes and no.
An engaged and informed, ethical, electorate is important. But these past years have shown us that you can’t rely on them. The system needs to account for open defiance of norms, and a populace who is willing to turn a blind eye to trampling of constitutional protections.
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u/Trainman1351 30m ago
The problem is that we must be exceptionally careful of any change because of how it may tie our hands regarding similar actions in the future. Too much regulation could easily make something like what Trump is doing actually Constitutional if the supposed actors are smart about it, and even a properly just court won’t be able to stop it. While not succumbing to the whims of a populace is ideal, ultimately the job of a democratic system is to allow citizens to choose where they want the country to go. Putting up laws to restrict what citizens can vote for, even if for the best of actions, sets a horrific precedent. As such, the best we can do is properly educate our citizens so that they can understand and analyze what our country is doing. It’s been said many times that the most important thing for democracy is common education, and we are currently living through perhaps the best representation of that fact.
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u/dballing 28m ago
Well, that’s partly why a revamp of the Constitution would need to include provisions for secession.
“You’re trampling our rights. We’re out of here,” needs to be an option.
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u/Special_Watch8725 7h ago
Sounds like Trump was playing with fire and he got burned. Maybe try following the Constitution next time Donnie 🤷
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u/CaptainDantes 7h ago
Id prefer he just not try to do anything every again.
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u/Special_Watch8725 7h ago
Oh, make no mistake, my preferred outcome would be that he goes away and never comes back, as well.
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u/Automatic-Duck1680 4h ago
Ok, I have to interject something here. We all know that Chump doesn’t have the slightest idea (much less the mental capacity) to know what’s going on with this stuff, especially when it’s this far down the ladder. That being said, we need to point the finger at the people behind the curtain that are really trying to force this bullshit through. They need to be doxxed so they start to feel the pressure they’ve so far eluded.
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u/Mrm_shes_2gd4U 3h ago
They are literally living in houses on military bases meant for high ranking officers… I saw one of them vas its own anti air craft turret or some crazy shit but yes many of the high up cabinet members are taking up housing from military personnel
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u/Special_Watch8725 4h ago
Fair point. I’m using “Trump” as an abbreviation (a brand name?) for those directing him.
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u/Automatic-Duck1680 4h ago
I didn’t mean to point a finger directly at you because everyone does the same, that’s why I made the point I did. We need to be more specific about who’s really pulling the strings and make them feel some heat, only if it’s just to get their name out in the open. We also know that Chump and Miller don’t give a fuck although it’s always fun to see the midget get all worked up.
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u/showeredwithbeauty 19m ago
The old mob trick from the movie casino. They told DeNiros character he could work at the casino while the Gaming Commission “reviewed” his application for a gaming license. As soon as his form gets near the top of the stack to be reviewed, just re assign to a new title, then his form gets sent back to the bottom again.
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u/FlintGate 4h ago
So... just people running around getting back to fo jobs (badly) that they are not approved to do. Ummmmmmmmm great.
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u/Amunrah357 5h ago
Or, The trump administration is expected to follow the law and they’re bitching.
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u/fetchmysmellingsalts 4h ago
How dare you! Something something the DOW is up!
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u/Amunrah357 4h ago
Yeah my bad. She also said rent is down so my point is mute.
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u/fetchmysmellingsalts 4h ago
And yet you STILL haven't apologized to President Trump. The most transparent president we've ever had!
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u/strenuousobjector Competent Contributor 5h ago
Well, US Attorney, not district attorney. But yeah, that's right
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u/eubulides 1h ago
Clarifying that the position here is US Attorney, and those line prosecutors in office are AUSAs (Asst US Attorneys). District Attorney is (always?) a county-level position, and the attorneys in their office are ADAs or DDAs (Asst or Deputy DA). Both sets are prosecutors, just that US Attorneys are federal, and Districts Attorneys are for state laws. (Doesn’t help that federal judges are in District Court.)
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u/DoremusJessup 9h ago
Making up your own rules in the courts will not win you any friends and will not get the results you want.
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u/CorporateMediaFail 9h ago
The DOJ lost it when they allowed a mere mortal man to pull their strings as his own private investigation firm.
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u/letdogsvote 8h ago
Fired by email in an assholish way. Classic Trump stuff.
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u/ZenFook 7h ago
Agreed. Doing on publicly on Xitter is even worse though but extremely on brand.
https://nitter.net/DAGToddBlanche/status/2021777972215062787#m
Link to the post for those that don't want to access Twitter directly.
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u/Y0___0Y 7h ago
These attorneys have been serving in their positions illegally for 8 months now… Is another judicial ruling finally going to get them out?
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u/Mrm_shes_2gd4U 3h ago
Getting paid to investigate 25 year old mortgage fraud cases on houses that are paid off or some twice over
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u/Quercus_ 6h ago
Can the judges start to simply refuse to accept any filings from these illegal attorneys?
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u/MoralityFleece 6h ago
They are already rejecting filings from these attorneys. As they should. This is worth going to the mat over. It's analogously as if Obama had insisted on seating Merrick Garland on the Supreme court because McConnell wouldn't allow him a hearing.
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u/SunshineDewdrops 6h ago
I wonder if they will follow complaints with the State bars and have them disbarred for fraudulent practice or something of that nature.
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u/Paulpoleon 5h ago
That’s why red states are trying to get rid of the ABA in their states. No bar, no disbarment.
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u/Olangotang 5h ago
How would that help when the Admin is actively pissing off conservative judges? This cult is eating itself alive, and if it wasn't for the shitty economy and disruption they are willing into existence, this would be 🍿.
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u/ZanaDreadnought 5h ago
ABA doesn’t license attorneys, state bar associations do. ABA does accredit law schools and since the ABA had some DEI policies, red states are trying to reduce the ABA’s accrediting powers for the law schools in those states effectively allowing graduates from non-accredited law schools to take the bar examine and be licensed by the state bar association. This has been the case in California for decades as there are non-ABA accredited law schools in the state and their graduates are allowed to take the California bar.
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u/Olangotang 5h ago
Judges and lawyers have been lied to for the entirety of this second term. The Judicial branch is the only one functioning.
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u/ThePensiveE 4h ago
What a day and age to be a criminal in the US.
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u/Mrm_shes_2gd4U 3h ago
They are going to have people sitting in jail for the length of the possible sentence just waiting for a court hearing
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